Nick Thompson filed a complaint against Love Is Blind’s casting team over ‘lack of autonomy’
He hopes to 'change the landscape of reality TV'
EXCLUSIVE: Nick Thompson has helped to file a case against the Love Is Blind casting agency, Kinetic Content. He has been trying to fight for reality TV contestants ever since he stopped filming season two with now ex-wife Danielle Ruhl, and is working with the National Labour Relations Board responsible for enforcing labour law across the United States.
Nick Thompson filed a case against the Love Is Blind casting team
Basically, Nick from season two of Love Is Blind revealed to us that he filed a case against Kinetic Content, who draw up the contracts and reach out to the show’s potential contestants. He claims that currently, reality TV stars are considered contractors rather than employees, meaning they don’t get the same rights as someone deemed an employee.
He told us, “They have a lack of autonomy while filming because of labour laws. We should be classified as employees instead, which would give us many of the rights that contractually give us the ability to negotiate pay, the ability to get overtime pay, and to have mandated breaks. I helped file a case against them in December, which labelled us as employees.”
The National Labour Relations Board, a government agency that protects workers’ rights, claim the casting agency is breaking the law by classifying contestants as contractors. Basically, this means the contestants don’t have the ability to speak up about working conditions, such as long filming days, and can’t negotiate on terms like minimum wage.
Nick, who says he was “damaged in the process from a mental health perspective and because of a public divorce,” doesn’t want to rule out reality TV as a concept, but rather says he “doesn’t want people to be harmed mentally for entertainment.” He hopes that, if this case is accepted and goes through, he could help “change the landscape for reality TV cast members like Love Is Blind and other shows.”
He wants to give reality TV stars more filming rights
Nick is devoted to helping reality TV stars gain more filming rights, and be treated like employees. He says there was meant to be a hearing happening at the end of the month, which now looks like it’s going to be postponed to July, adding that it could “change the precedent.” He said, “If the judge says the classification is accurate, then a lot of that contract (with other 30 clauses under investigation) could become non-void.”
He said, “People could be free to speak about conditions without being threatened with being sued, it would give people the ability to negotiate joining or forming a union within the Love Is Blind and reality cast muse. This would change the complete business model for the entire industry,” adding that the case could potentially be appealed.
Reality Shrine has contacted Netflix and Kinetic Content for comment.
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